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LoganCrews (2861 KP) rated In the Heart of the Sea (2015) in Movies

Apr 9, 2021 (Updated Jul 4, 2021)  
In the Heart of the Sea (2015)
In the Heart of the Sea (2015)
2015 | Action, Drama
If this story was handled with a bit more bite, a little less austere loyalty to formula than Ron Howard's PG-13 cleanliness then honestly this could have been the solid adventure movie it so clearly wants to be. It's already got the right look for it - with these pretty much perfect sea-faring nautical visuals: rich blues, greens, and yellows smoothly coat dutch angles of people looking wide-eyed into the sky with the wind flowing through their hair and whatnot... it's beautiful until it directly clashes with this indefensible CGI. The whales look like shit and the horrendous green screen work makes everyone constantly look like that last scene from 𝘎𝘦𝘮𝘪𝘯𝘪 𝘔𝘢𝘯. The framing device with Whishaw and Gleeson - both of whom are award-worthy in this (particularly Gleeson, giving some of the best work of his career painting a deeply effective complex portrait of this clearly haunted man) - is more exciting and emotive than the actual story, which shambles at such a laborious pace that one can even stop laughing at Hemsworth's piss-poor accent. Just feels manufactured, cuts a bit too much to simulate fun rather than actually having it. Has its moments but you're better off just re-reading "Moby Dick".
  
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Joe Dante recommended The Old Dark House (1932) in Movies (curated)

 
The Old Dark House (1932)
The Old Dark House (1932)
1932 | Horror
6.0 (1 Ratings)
Movie Favorite

"To go back to the ’30s, which is the movies I saw when I was growing up on television — it was one that they never showed, because it was lost for years and it was by James Whale. It’s called The Old Dark House, 1932. It’s currently about to be reissued on Blu-ray. For years, all you could see were these sort of beat-up prints I think they found in the mid-’60s, and they had been lost, because of a remake and some rights issues and stuff. Now, it’s sort of come back, and it’s got a great cast of Charles Laughton, Gloria Stuart, Boris Karloff, Melvyn Douglas, Raymond Massey. It’s the classic “travelers stranded in the haunted house and the bridge has washed out”, but it’s the template for all the movies that followed it. It’s still one of the more watchable and disturbing movies from that period. And it’s a shame that it isn’t better known; it never got television distribution, and it wasn’t included in the package of Universal horror pictures because it wasn’t in their library anymore. It’s a chance, I think, for people to catch up with it now. I’m a big James Whale fan, and this might be his best picture."

Source
  
Thir13en Ghosts (2001)
Thir13en Ghosts (2001)
2001 | Horror
I absolutely get why this has become a bit of a cult classic, but for everything I like about Thir13en Ghosts, there's something I dislike.
I enjoy the setting. The "modern day" haunted house is an inspired design, and the fact that the set was practically built to film on is quite something. I also enjoy the titular ghosts. Each one has a unique look, and the make up work is superb. I also love that the legendary F. Murray Abraham is in this, as well as Matthew Lillard, doing what Matthew Lillard does best, hamming things up to the max.
Other than that, it's all a bit flaccid. There's a whole lot of characters-walking-around-and-getting-lost going on, and it's honestly a drag. It doesn't help that precisely none of these characters are easy to care about. There are multiple instances of laughably huge exposition dumps, in a narrative that's needlessly overstuffed with unnecessary plot elements.

Personally, it just about coasts by due to the nostalgia of being 13 years old and just getting into horror when it originally released, and I always have a good enough time with it. Also a dude gets vertically bisected which is pretty rad.
  
Hunting for an Inheritance on a Haunted Lake
Nancy Drew and her friends are traveling to Misty Lake. It’s supposed to be an overnight stay, but they quickly extend it when they hear that an old tour boat that sank is now haunting the lake. Meanwhile, they meet a young woman who is searching for a family inheritance that was lost over 100 years ago. Will they solve these mysteries?

This is one I know I read years ago, and parts of it came back to me as a reread it. I quickly got caught up in the action and danger again. There is a lot going on here, and I knew it would all tie together. The biggest mystery to me was how. I’ll admit, I rolled my eyes a bit at all the coincidences involved, but I was having fun. Nancy and her friends get a bit of time to have some character development early on, but they are still pretty thin characters. Some of the elements in the book are dated since the version I read came out in the 1960’s. Still, I think kids of all ages will enjoy the action and mystery of this book.
  
Dark Shadows (2012)
Dark Shadows (2012)
2012 | Drama, Horror, Mystery
If not for the last 15/20 minutes (sans the atrocious ending, and even then they're only mildly watchable at best) I'd very comfortably call this one of the worst movies I've ever seen - and still will. Not even distracting, and intentionally as non-fun as possible. How exciting, we get to see nearly two LONG hours of nonentities played by actors who clearly couldn't give less of a shit about being there (except for the sole good scenery-chewing of Eva Green) tepidly talk about... like, fishing and shit? Sometimes even to each other! Where's the camp? Where's the (pun not intended) spirit? Doesn't go for jokes, doesn't go for drama, doesn't go for romance, doesn't go for anything - complete and utter apathy all around. It doesn't even look good, dear God some color could have at least made this pop but no of course it's color-coded like ash and jizz. This wakes up a bit when it has a spooky haunted house vibe to it but too bad that's only like a collective (and generous) few minutes of the whole thing. What the actual hell were they thinking, how can a director possibly stoop *noticeably* lower than 𝘋𝘶𝘮𝘣𝘰 (2019)?
  
Ghost Moon (The Bone Island Trilogy #3)
Ghost Moon (The Bone Island Trilogy #3)
Heather Graham | 2010 | Contemporary, Horror, Science Fiction/Fantasy
8
8.0 (1 Ratings)
Book Rating
178 of 200
Kindle
Ghost moon (BONE island book 4)
By Heather Graham

Reclusive collector Cutter Merlin is seldom seen in Key West - lately, not at all. Officer Liam Beckett visits Merlin's curious house and discovers the gentleman in his study. In his death grip: a volume of occult lore and a reliquary. His eyes are wide with fright, his mouth a horrified rictus where spiders now dwell.

Kelsey Donovan returns to the old house to catalog her estranged grandfather's collection of artifacts and antiquities, vowing to see his treasures divested properly. But she cannot ignore the sense that she's being watched, the reports of malevolent black figures, the pervasive smell of death.

Is the Merlin house haunted, even cursed? Liam knows well that some ghost stories are true and he swears to protect Kelsey. But there are forces at work for whom one more life is a pittance to pay for their deepest desire...


I enjoyed this one more than the 2nd it rounded everything off so nicely! The only thing that slightly annoyed me was the jumping straight from one character to another in a different part of the story drove me crazy. Bartholomew finally found peace with his lovely lady!
Nice end to a strange ghost series!
  
Oh No! - Single by EMAN8
Oh No! - Single by EMAN8
7
7.0 (1 Ratings)
Album Rating
EMAN8 (Brandyn Burnette) is an LA-based artist from Saint Louis, MO. Not too long ago, he released a groovy urban pop tune, entitled, “Oh No!”.

“Baby, you so sick you make me nausea. Please forgive me I’m just being cautious. I know that you got a couple of options. Lately, you’ve been checking all my boxers. All my homies told me not to fall for it. Put me on the court and I’ma ball for it. I just need to know if you are all in. I know that you’re drunk that’s why you’re calling.” – lyrics

‘Oh No!’ tells an interesting tale of a young guy who has high hopes for a problematic relationship which he shares with his significant other.

Apparently, he can’t believe what she tells him and can’t decipher if it’s a nightmare or dream that he has fallen deeply into.
Later, he admits that this was everything he ever wanted, but every day feels like it’s haunted.

‘Oh No!’ contains a cautionary storyline, harmonious vocals, and groovy instrumentation flavored with urban R&B and hip-hop elements.

EMAN8 hopes to emanate the true authentic vibration of his experiences, soundscapes, and songwriting.

His name comes from his Jamaican middle name “Emanate”, which means to come forth.
  
    Lost Within

    Lost Within

    Games

    (0 Ratings) Rate It

    App

    Named one of the best games in the App Store Best of 2015. “Gorgeous visuals and a tense...

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David McK (3547 KP) rated Camelot in Books

Jun 1, 2020  
Camelot
Camelot
Giles Kristian | 2020 | Fiction & Poetry
9
9.0 (1 Ratings)
Book Rating
"Camelot!"
"Camelot!"
"It's only a model"
"Shhh"



"On second thoughts, let's not go there. 'Tis a silly place"

With that out of the way, this is a sequel - or, as the author (Giles Kristian) himself puts it - more of a companion piece to his earlier (and originally conceived as being standalone) novel Lancelot, although I feel that he REALLY should have stuck with his original name for the novel: Galahad.

Calling it Camelot, to me, does the novel a bit of a disservice, with that location not really a key factor in the story. What is, however, is the central character (and first person narrator) of Galahad himself: Lancelot's son, raised by Christian monks following his fathers death in the climax of the previous, who (here) is not as pure and devout and, well, 'holy' as he is otherwise sometimes depicted, and who is still haunted by his legacy.

Various other characters from Arthurian legend themselves make an appearance, most notably (on the character front) Gawain, Merlin and Iselle whilst (on the 'Quest'/story front) we have a reimagining of The Green Knight, and the Search for The Holy Grail.

Like "Lancelot" before it, this is well worth a read.